Sociology News & Events

The degree to which religion is decoupled from prosocial goals and spirituality in contemporary young adults is one of many research questions to be addressed in the project “Spirituality and Prosocial Values in the Absence of Religion Among Millennials and Their Families.” This study will be led by Merril Silverstein, the Marjorie Cantor Endowed Professor of Aging Studies in the Falk College and the Maxwell School.

The Maxwell School’s Tenth Decade Project provides seed funding for worthy scholarly projects that have the potential to produce significant external research funding and high-impact publications. Since it was created, the Tenth Decade Project has attracted nearly $850,000 in gifts from 267 individual donors, including a lead gift from long-time Maxwell supporters Gerry and Daphna Cramer.

"Historically, grandparents have always provided care," says University Professor Madonna Harrington Meyer. "What we’re seeing now is grandparents providing care that looks a lot more like parenting: more hours and more tasks."

“The faculty promoted are nationally recognized scholars, outstanding teachers, and engaged in making their work accessible to broader audiences in an effort to shape future research, and dialogue and practice,” said David M. Van Slyke, dean of the Maxwell School.

University Professor Madonna Harrington Meyer discusses grandparents who are taking on tasks that have, until recently, generally been the purview of parents. So, in addition to the sublime pleasures of grandparenting, many grandparents are now also feeling high levels of stress and strain as grandparenting intensifies.

"Initially created to give children a break from the dirty smokestacks of NYC, the Fresh Air Fund now emphasizes giving children from underserved communities a break from drugs, violence, or gangs," writes University Professor Madonna Harrington Meyer.

"My mom told the seven of us to go outside and play," University Professor Madonna Harrington Meyer recalled. "Today’s mom says, ‘Get in the van and I’ll drive you from Spanish camp to violin lessons.’ The idea is to cultivate your child, give them every possible advantage, and it clearly spills over to the intensification of grandparenting." Harrington Meyer was interviewed for the New York Times article "When Grandparents Help Hold It All Together." 

The prestigious distinction—a four-year, renewable appointment—is granted to faculty who excel in their fields and who have made extraordinary scholarly contributions as judged by their peers nationally and internationally. “Professor Harrington Meyer’s work is focused on some of the most persistent, difficult and relevant issues facing our society. Her research and teaching challenge us to think through and find solutions that better our communities,” says Vice Chancellor and Provost Michele Wheatly. 

"Many students are scared away already by the new policies even before going through the visa hurdles," says Yingyi Ma, associate professor of sociology.

According to University Professor Harrington Meyer, grandmothers often share child-rearing duties and ease the childcare burden of working parents, a role that has only been increasing.